Tag: Authors

I’m Going Slightly Mad.

Sara Mazariegos

Now that our trip is over and I’m back to being able to think about writing, I’m finding it’s all I can think about.

I’m planning to complete my recommended writing pause and start writing something brand new on November 1st, for NaNoWriMo. I must take a week off to go to a family wedding, but no sweat because I’m planning to write through December to get to at least 80,000 words anyway. NaNoWri2Mo?

I wish I hadn’t written out a detailed outline already, because now I’m just sitting around like, “What do I doooo??” I’ve become inspired by Christine Riccio’s writing journey. I started paying attention to it because I started reading the book she was working on — Again, But Better. It’s pretty fun to watch her progress on the story I’ve come to know well.

There were some moments yesterday when I felt pretty low and self-doubty. I want to publish the novel I worked so hard on for 3+ years, but I have to be realistic and move on to the next project… at least for now.

Who knows? Maybe writing my next novel will help me improve the last one in the next edit/rewrite stage!

I’m trying to channel Christine’s positive energy. We’ll see if it works when I’m allowed to write again.

Pizzamas.

Sara Mazariegos

I’m a Nerdfighter, and therefore I would be remiss if I didn’t mention that it’s the middle of Pizzamas! It’s a yearly tradition wherein John Green (and this year, his brother Hank) grows a ridiculous mustache and they make videos every day for two weeks (not including weekends.) They also have a shop, which I linked above but also again in this sentence, where you can purchase cool shirts (with Pizza John on them), blankets, sweaters, Chia Pets?!, etc. All of the money goes to charity, and once the two weeks are over, you can’t purchase the items again.

This year, the proceeds go to charities that stop tuberculosis.

I bought a shirt the first day. 🙂

DFTBA*.

*Don’t Forget To Be Awesome

Going for the “no.”

Sara Mazariegos

Jessica Faust from BookEnds recommends going for the “no” when submitting query letters, because it helps narrow down the list of potential agents and helps gauge if something needs to change — either the query itself or the novel’s concept.

I admit, I sent out my first thirteen queries without considering this. The nos depressed me, especially the first one. But, eventually, I realized getting a no is better than not getting any kind of response and it takes a lot of nos before eventually getting a “yes.”

I’ve since stopped sending query letters so I can rewrite my novel according to beta feedback and my notes. I’m reshaping things to better fit what actually fits into the market, while still holding true to my novel and what I have to say.

Hopefully, I’ll be much closer to a “yes” when I send my next batch of queries with my fresh manuscript draft.

Detritus.

Sara Mazariegos

I’ve been thinking it was already September for the past week.

It’s that awkward time of year when it’s a high in the low 80s but a low in the high 50s, so should I wear a hoodie and be hot some of the time or go without and be cold some of the time?

My parents reference a lot of things from the 1940s and 1950s because of their parents, so I make the same references. It makes me feel simultaneously old and cultured. I grew up recognizing the impressions (at least the majority of them) on Looney Tunes. That’s the true litmus test for culturedness.

There are exactly three weeks between the two trips my husband and I are taking soon. That’s just under the amount of time I’ll have to check out a book on Libby and later return it. When I check out a book for the first trip, it’ll be due the day we leave for our second trip. I’m going to need two books. This upsets me more than it should.

I’m currently in the middle portion of my novel. The part I’ve seen writing advice YouTubers describe as “sagging.” It feels like a metaphor for life. It’s where all of the important stuff happens! But it’s also slow to write and hard to stay motivated.

Every time I hit the next big palindrome word goal, I feel like I could fly.

Self-sabotage.

Sara Mazariegos

Reading this blog post made me realize that many writers feel like I do. Reading other books in my genre* is inspiring and the best way for me to learn how to write better, but it’s a double-edged sword at times because I become envious of other authors’ storytelling techniques.

For instance, as I read Georgie, All Along, I’m so jealous of Kate Clayborn’s ability to create such a sweet, warm story full of interesting, realistic characters. It seems effortless, but I also know it takes a lot of effort to seem effortless!

It’s important to remember that my story is mine, so of course it won’t sound like another writer’s story. Finding my voice has been a fun journey. Being inspired by others who write similar books is a good thing, but I shouldn’t let it intimidate me or make me think I need to overhaul my plot.

So give yourselves permission to love what you write, because if you fall in love with it, we can feel that. And odds are much better we’ll fall in love with it too.

  Kristen Lamb

At least no one in my life has told me that I shouldn’t be a writer. Who needs that kind of negativity?


*I’m not struggling with which genre I’m writing. At least not really. It’s definitely romance. I’ve waffled a bit between calling it “new adult” or “coming-of-age” though. I’m probably just going to call it both. But at least I’m not confused about the romance aspect!

Word Salad.

Sara Mazariegos

I attended the Gaithersburg Book Festival this past Saturday. It was inspiring to see so many book lovers and listen to authors detail their work routines (and their addictions to reading Goodreads reviews!) I left with three new books and several publishing companies’ bookmarks. A+ would do it again.

I’ve reached the point in revising my novel where I’ve tasked myself with making a significant change. I think it will really help the plot, but it’s still weighty to make a big change when the story has been one way for so long. All good authors make changes though! That’s what I keep telling myself.

Next month, I’m planning to attend an Ali Hazelwood event for her newest book (Love, Theoretically) — day job permitting. I find that what ignites me the most is reading/watching other authors discussing their writing. Enthusiasm breeds enthusiasm, at least for me.

What gets you excited about writing?

Romance Shelf.

Sara Mazariegos

I have so many romance novels now — thank you, comps! — that I need a new bookshelf to hold them all. I told my husband that he could get me a romance shelf for our anniversary this year, so we don’t have a bookvalanche in our dining room.

As much as I love libraries, I’m a slow reader. I read several books quickly recently because the due dates made me, but I prefer being able to sit down and slowly digest what I’m reading. We went to Target with our friend recently, and I discovered to my delight that the shelves there are basically Goodreads in person.


Seriously, this looks like my feed. It’s apparently “BookTok.” I need to get past the anxiety that app gives me and check out some of their TikToks…

Buying books in the genre I’m writing has given me such joy. Research can be fun.

Just have to make sure not to overfill my new shelf!

Beta Fish.

Sara Mazariegos

Like a lot of people, I have a love-hate relationship with feedback. A good critique can be so helpful, but it’s also stressful when I’m anticipating constructive criticism. What if they don’t like my writing? I’ve noticed that I’m brimming with confidence and excitement when I first finish drafting a novel, then I read through it and go from “Wow, this is great!” to “Maybe writing isn’t for me…” Which, I’ve learned, is totally normal!

Writers are interesting folks.

This is why feedback is such an important part of the process. I’ve read that many authors dislike the revision stage, but I find it rejuvenating. Starting from a blank document is way more intimidating to me than molding the words that are already there into something better. When my beta readers sent their feedback to me recently, I was thrilled.

I suppose it helps that several of their notes were about things that stuck out to me, too.

A fresh perspective has given me a creative burst, and I can see a positive change already. It feels like magic.

Back to the writing board!

Britlit.

Sara Mazariegos

I recently started reading Conversations with Friends by Sally Rooney. Immediately, I was captivated, but one thing sticks out to me as I read: the lack of quotation marks for the dialogue.

There are many U.K. idiosyncrasies in writing. Favourite, colour, kerb (?!) Whenever I discover one, I’m usually delighted. After all, I wrote “dialogue” in the paragraph above. I’ve been spelling it “theatre” my entire life. There are some British spellings that just make sense to me.

But I just can’t get behind not using quotation marks. Thoughts and spoken words are written out the same way, and the narration is also in first person, so I have to read sections a second time just to keep track of what was said.

Example:


Now, admittedly, I’m a dumb American. But since when are quotation marks not hip enough to be used in a novel? I’m genuinely curious. This reads more clearly to me:

“This is how privilege gets perpetuated,” Philip told me in the office one day. “Rich assholes like us taking unpaid internships and getting jobs off the back of them.”
“Speak for yourself,” I said. “I’m never going to get a job.”

‘kerb’ is just a silly British quirk to me, but the quotation thing is perplexing.

Killing My Darlings.

Sara Mazariegos

I’ve drafted my novel. I’ve taken a break from it, edited it, revised it, rewritten things, taken things out, dissected it, kept myself up late with worry about it, and let some of my friends have a look at it.

I set a goal for myself. I’m reading a chapter a day, as a final ‘edit now or forever hold your words’ read-through. My birthday is on Wednesday. After Wednesday, I’ll start submitting my manuscript to book agents.

Deep breaths.

I wrote my novel with a particular readership in mind. It’s for the Millennials who graduated college thinking everything would go as well as it did for their parents, only for everything to be ten times more difficult. It’s also a love story, because it’s dangerous to go alone.

I can’t wait for you to read it.